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New Aspects of Manual Protection Testing

Thomas Schossig and Stefan Schwabe, OMICRON, Austria

Abstract
Test sets are used in substation commissioning
and routine testing of protection devices. Modern
techniques support the user by creating test
templates and the documentation of numerous
tests for e.g. multi-functional protection devices. As
such there are various and diverse applications for
a manual testing. The authors describe an
innovative approach and application in this regard
with an established testing technique.

Introduction
Protection systems play a key role for a safe and
reliable operation of todays electricity power
systems. This is relevant for all power system grids
in generation, transmission and distribution,
industrial, railway, mining and marine applications.
Properly working protection devices help to
maintain the safety of the system and to safeguard
assets from damage while assisting to ensure
security of supply. In order to guarantee reliable
operation, protection relays must be tested
throughout their life-cycle, from their initial
development
through
production
and
commissioning to periodical maintenance during
operation.

Fig. 1 Three-phase protection test set with

front panel control

Automated Testing
Testing the multi-functional design of a modern
numerical protection device usually requires the
combination of different testing steps. Figure 2
shows an example of the test plan of a complex
feeder protection.

Test Approach An Overview

In a classical protection test, test sets are used to
generate analog quantities (currents and voltages)
and evaluate the response of relays (starting and
tripping). Figure 1 shows an example of such a
device, equipped with a front control panel, details
of which will be mentioned later in this article.
Protection testing, both commissioning and routine
testing, can be either operated manually or
automatically with the use of central test
documents. For automated testing, a test
document called test template can be used
repeatedly - .e.g. for a single feeder or for a
protection device with different protection
functions. This test template can be re-used in
future tests which allow automated testing.

Fig. 2 Test plan of a complex feeder protection

OMICRON electronics GmbH 2012

The test plan can be prepared in the office. When

running the test plan, all the defined test functions
of each operational test module (e.g. overcurrent
protection, distance protection etc.) are executed
before the program automatically switches to the
next one, until all the modules have been
completed. After the completion of the test, the
software enters the results into the test plan
document, which thereby forms a comprehensive
overall test report. After the testing process, the
document still contains all of the test settings
(protection device parameters, test modules used,
test points, etc.) Hence, it can re-used to repeat
the test at a later date.

Manual Testing
Especially in distribution networks and industry
facilities, protection systems are often very basic
devices that only detect overcurrent and
undervoltage. These rather simple relays can, of
course, be tested with a fully automated PCcontrolled solution. For many users, however, this
seems a little like using a sledgehammer to crack a
nut. Often the simplicity of the operation is more
important than the automation of the test, since
protection testing is just one or many tasks to be
completed.
The typical tester, who tests the devices manually,
applies test quantities to the relays, receives a
reaction and assesses it according to the known
nominal value. A suitable test set must therefore
be able to provide the test quantities in the most
convenient way possible. Through the internal
calculation of currents and voltages from e.g.
impedances, powers and symmetrical components
parameters the testing tasks are supported better if
direct control of the test devices current and
voltage outputs is possible.
Important for every test is the proper
documentation of the results. Many users keep a
manual protocol of their test results. Others,
however, prefer automated recording of test
results. This reduces the risk of error and can be
used to improve traceability of the tests.
Consequently, a manual test should offer the
possibility to automatically save the measured
values in a report.

Different Types of Manual Testing

The analysis of the many different ways of manual
testing shows that these can be reduced to two
basic patterns:
1. Determination of the value at which the
DUT (device under test) shows a reaction
2. Time measurement from the stimulation of
a DUT until its reaction

The first test is usually called pickup test. One

parameter
(current,
voltage,
frequency,
impedance, etc.), which is measured by the
protection device, is continuously varied until the
relay picks up, while the other parameters are kept
constant. If complex values are varied, such as
e.g. impedances, a modification of more than one
output parameters may take place. To fulfill this
task it is therefore helpful if the values supervised
by the protection device can be directly
maintained.
During time measurement it is of importance that a
change between definite states can be simulated.
For most relays this means a switch from an
operational-state to a fault-state. The measured
times are then the pick-up-time, which gives
information about the speed of the protection
device itself, and the dead-time, which is part of
the concept of the protection coordination.

Test Solution for Manual Testing

The requirements of test solutions for manual
testing can be summarized as below:
Simple, intuitive operation
Support of pick-up testing
Support of time measurement based on
condition changes
Support of reporting
Calculation of currents and voltages from
quantities like impedances, power and
symmetrical components

Manuel Testing with Front Panel

Control
Beside the PC controlled testing solutions, which
offer a maximum functionality for automated
testing, front panel controls can also be used by
protection technicians for manual testing. The
major advantage of this control is its instant
availability for quick manual testing with test sets
without starting a PC.
Modern front panel controls should be simple to
operate without requiring special training of
protection technicians. In order to achieve this,
new approaches should be adopted. For instance,
the adjustment of test quantities can be made via a
control wheel with innovative and modern control
concepts combined. The use of Smartphone is a
good example in this regard.
The control wheel has proved to be a good
solution with its direct functionality and the ease of
control. In a modernized version, one can
configure it with an adaptive acceleration algorithm
which allows a user to work quickly and precisely.

OMICRON electronics GmbH 2012

Devices with modern control concepts such as

train ticket machines are mostly controlled
intuitively with a touch screen interface. This is
indeed a good reference for a test set which
should also have a quick and simple control. A
good example for such a concept is the OMICRON
CMControl.
One of the important criteria of a control is its ease
of operation. The CMControl can either be
attached to the CMC test set as a front panel
control unit or be detached and used as a
handheld control device. Magnetic elements at the
rear allow it to be easily attached to standard racks
while the built-in stand works perfectly on every
table. With its robust design and a display which
can be read even in the sunlight, this new device is
suitable for daily use.

Example: Testing of an Overcurrent

Relay (OC)
Overcurrent protection is arguably the most
common protection solution. If an overcurrent relay
is to be tested, the first step after the connection of
the test device to the relay is a wiring check. For
that it is advisable to apply an unbalanced system
to the relay and see whether the values measured
and displayed by the relay match those applied.
(Figure 3) Often a quick fault is applied to the
relay in order to see if the binary output commands
(pick-up and trip) are correctly wired as well.
The pick-up value is then tested. For an
overcurrent relay this is the current. Different faultmodels are available which allows convenient
testing of different overcurrent elements (phase,
residual, negative sequence, etc.).

Through slow variation of the test value (either

semi-automated, which has proven useful for PCcontrolled testing, or with the wheel for front-plate
control) the pick-up value is determined.

Fig. 4 Pick-up value test

The reactions of the DUT during the test should be

recorded in order to be able to determine the pickup value, the drop-off value and the calculated
drop-off ratio.

Further Applications
For manual tests, it is often necessary to determine
the time response e.g. the steps of an overcurrent
characteristic (Figure 5), the Z/t diagram of a
distance relay or the characteristic of an
overcurrent-time-relay. An optimal solution for
manual testing can be very simple yet allowing the
necessary measurements, since such tests consist
of repeated time measurements at different test
values.

Fig. 5 Overcurrent characteristics test

Particularly with such measurements the

application of the fault model does lead to results
that can be easily interpreted.

Fig. 3 Wiring check

In the example (Figure 4), a three phase test is

selected. For a directional overcurrent relay
additional parameters such as phase voltages are
needed in order to be able to determine the fault
direction.

OMICRON electronics GmbH 2012

Conclusion
The challenges of commissioning and routine
testing are diverse. As such there can be different
test application concepts. Test sets can be used
with a suitable PC-software for automated testing.
An additional control unit also enables fast and
efficient manual testing. New possibilities arise
through innovative approaches in the control unit.
User-friendliness minimizes the time and effort
required and allows an intuitive procedure for many
protection testing tasks.

OMICRON electronics GmbH 2012